Surveyor&#39;s rod.



R. HOLLINGSWORTH.

SURVEYORS ROD.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 15, 1912.

Patented June 3, 1913.

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R. HOLLINGSWORTH.

SURVBYORS ROD.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 15, 1912.

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ROSS HOLLINGSWORTH, OF CANON CITY,

COLORADO, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-SIXTH TO HENRY L. WHITE, ONE-SIXTH TO WILLIAMB. XVHITE, AND ONE-SIXTH. TO EDV/'IN H. STINEMEYER, ALL OF FREMONTCOUNTY, COLORADO.

SURVEYORS ROD.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 3, 1913.

Application filed May 15, 1912. Serial No. 697,565.

To all 10h-0m it muy concern Be it known that l, Ross HOLLINGSWORTH, acitizen of the United Stat-es, residing at Canon City, in the county ofFremont and State of Colorado, have invented certain new and AusefulImprovements in Surveyors Rods, of which the following is aspecification, reference being had to the accompanyw ing drawings.

This invent-ion comprehends certain new and useful improvements insurveying instruments or appliances and relates particularly to animproved adjustable and selfcalculating grade and cross .section rod.

The invention has for one of its primary objects a simple and efficientconstruction of device of this character, embodying a movable runner onwhich the target is made stationary, whereby after the target has beenadjusted to the hub of the transit or level, a variation of the level orgrade from an initial point or from the point where the instrument islocated, may be quickly and accurately read and whereby there may beread on the runner above or below the target, as the rise or depressionof the ground may render necessary, the exact number of feet orfractions thereof in tenths or graduations of multiples of tenths, theamount of rise or depression between the location of the rod and theinstrument.

rlfhe invention has for another main object an improved surveyors rod,the parts of which are so constructed and arranged that the readingtaken at any point on the runner' will indicate the differences in gradefrom the transit or level without deducting` the reading from theposition of the target on the rod proper, thereby making it possible totake readings with a greater degree of accuracy and rapidity andabsolutely without possibility of errors.

A still further object of the invention is a device of this character inwhich there is embodied a movable rear runner and a target securedtixedly thereto, which will render it possible to cross section a lineof center stakes at the same time the center stakes are graded.

The invention has for another object a device of this type embodyingfront and rear movable runners and targets carried by the respectiverunners, one of said targets being so constructed that, when only oneside of the rod is in use, the wings of such target may be folded out ofthe line of vision and the runner lowered wholly within the rod properand locked.

The invention has for a still further objecta surveying accessory of thecharacter described, which is so constructed that part of both runnersextending below the target may, if desired, be made in diiferentlengths, longer or shorter, as may be made necessary by the existingconditions, whereby when it is necessary to read grades a greaterdistance below the target orto locate the target at a low point in therunner groove, portions of that part of the runner below the target maybe added or taken out, according to the particular requirements of thecase, it being understood that several extra runner sections arefurnished for that purpose. And the invention also aims to generallyimprove devices of this class and to render them more useful andcommercially desirable.

With these and other objects in view, as will more fully appear as thedescription proceeds, the invention consists in certain constructions,arrangements and combinations of the parts that I shall hereinafter.fully describe and claim.

For a full understanding of the invention, reference is to be had to thefollowing description and accompanying drawing, in which,

Figure l is a front elevation of a surveyors rod constructed inaccordance with my invention, the device being shown partly broken away,in order to economize space. Fig. 2 is a fragmentary front elevation onan enlarged scale. Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view on the lineSW3, of Fig. l, looking upward or in the direction of the arrow. Fig. 4is a fragmentary elevation illustrating the manner in which extensionsections may be secured to the runners, as will be hereinafter morespecifically described. Fig. 5 is a rear elevation partly broken away.Fig. 6 is a fragmentary rear elevation on an enlarged scale to showparticularly the rear target, and, Fig. 7 is a sectional viewillustrating one of the latches that are used to lock the runners intheir adjusted position.

Corresponding and like parts are referred to in the Vfollowingdescription and designated in tie accompanying drawing by like referencecharacters.

Referring to the drawing, the numeral 1 designates the rod proper whichmay be constructed of wood, pressed steel, or any other light weightmaterial and which may be made in any required length or in sectionshinged together. The rod 1 is formed on its opposite faces withlongitudinally extending grooves which are disposed in offset relationto each other, as best illustrated in Fig. 3 and which are formed withundercut side walls. These grooves 2 are designed, respectively, toaccommodate a movable front ruimer 3 and a movable rear runner et, eachof said runners being formed on its side edges with longitudinal ribs orflanges 5 fitting within the undercut side walls of the grooves.

rlhe face and rear side of t-he rod 1 are provided with graduationsscaled in feet, tenths and its multiples beginning at the lower end andgraduated consecutively to the top. Each runner has secured theretointermediate of its ends, a target, the front target being designated Gand the rear target being designated 7, the targets being secured infixed relation to their respective runners by screws or similarfastening devices, as shown. The outer faces of the movable runners 3and 4 are likewise scaled in feet, tenths and their multiples beginningat the center of the target and graduated consecutively to the top andto the bottoni ends of the runners.

The front target 6 is in the form of a. disk with a sector shapedopening cut therefrom to define vertical and horizontal sighting edges Sand is preferably divided, as is customary, into a plurality ofcontrasting sector shaped panels. The rear target 7 comprises a bodysection 9 which is preferably rectangular and preferably tapering sidewings 10 which are hingedly connected to the side edges of the bodysection 9, as indicated at 11, whereby the wings may be swung out--wardly so as to project laterally from the rear side of the rod, or whennot required for use, may be folded back upon themselves and the bodysection 9 and secured in their inoperative positions by any desiredmeans. Preferably, the rear target 7 is also divided into a plurality ofpanels of contrasting color so as to assist the operator in obtainingthe sightand also is, like the front target, formed with a sector shapedopening cut therefrom to define vertical and horizontal sighting edges7.

In order to secure the movable runners 3 and 4 at the required elevationrelative to the rod 1, each of said runners is provided with a latch 12.Each of these latches is formed with a cam head 13 fulcrumed in therunner, as at le, and a handle 15 -by which the latch may be easilymanipulated.' The cam head 13 of the latch 12 is designed to bearagainst a strip 16 of` spring lsteel having one end attached to the backof t-he runner and the whole length of the strip being countersunk flushwith the back of the runner, whereby when the latch is pressed to itsoperative locking position, the eccentric head will prevent all tendencyof the runner moving up or down during the operation of clamping therunner in any desired position. Either of the runners may be cut at anvpredetermined point below its target, and there may be secured thereto,extension sections 1T as by hooks 1S and keeper studs 19, whereby it ispossible to raise or lower the target to a more extended degree ofheight or depth, as required.

From the foregoing description in connection with the accompanyingdrawing, the operation of my improved adjustable and self-reading gradeand cross section rod will be apparent. ln the practical use of thedevice, in the operation of grading, it is obvious that when the frontmovable runner 8, to which the target is fixedly connected, is adjustedso that the target will be in line with the hub of the transit or level,the variation of the level or grade from an initial point may be easilyread and as the reading taken at any point on the runner indicates thedifference in grade from the instrument without deducting the readingfrom the position of the target on the rod proper, it is possible totake readings with a greater degree of accuracy and rapidity and withoutpossibility of an error. The equipment on the back of the rod renders itpossible to cross section a line of center stakes at the same time thecenter stakes are graded. The target on the front face of the rod beingadjusted to the hub or transit or of the level, the line of centerstakes are graded, as above indicated, and as each center stake isgraded, the target on the rear face of the rod is to be adjusted to thegrade reading of that particular center stake. The engineer is able tolocate the rear target by the projecting wings on either side. lVhen therear target is adjusted to the center stake Vhub or to the instrumentlevel for that individual stake, the rodman ywill vthen ho'ld his rod onone of the cross section or side stakes, turning the rod so that therear face will be toward the engineer, whereupon the engineer can readon the cross section or rear runner, the eXact cut or fill from thecenter stake, without additions or deductions from his hub, as isnecessary with the rods heretofore employed. s

If it is desired to grade a series of cross section stakes at the sametime the center stakes are graded and if the grade to be determined,both for centers and cross sections, s entirely uniform or universal, itis unnecessary to bring the rear target and runner int-o action, but ifthe grade to be established is not entirely universal and if either thevarious center or cross section stakes are not a direct variation fromthe initial, the rear target and runner would be brought into action,provided it were not desirable to move the instrument nor to disturb thelocated front target. For eX- ample, presuming that center stake No. 1was a certain variation from the initial stake and that the center stakeNo. 2 was a variation from the center stake No. l, diiferent from thefirst variation, then the procedure would be as follows: After locatingthe instrument over the initial stake and adjusting the front target tothe hub of the instrument, the rod is heid with the front face towardthe instrument on the center stake No. 1 and a sight discloses the factthat there is, say, no feet and seven-tenths fall from the initial staketo the center stake No. l. Then, the rod-man after unfolding the wingsof the rear target, will bring that target into a line wit-h theinstrument vision on the front face reading no feet, seventenths abovethe front target and lock it in that position. The rod is then taken tothe center stake No. 2 and held with the rear face toward the instrumentand a sight gives the reading on the rear runner of three and one-tenthfeet below the target which, without mathematical calculation, is thevariation from the center sta re No. l to the center stake No. 2.Reversing the face of the rod shows a reading of two and fourtenths feetbelow the front target which, without having interfered with the hub ofeither the initial or the hub of the No. l center stake, discloses,without mathematical calculation, that the variation from the initial tothe centerl stake No. 2 is two and four-tenths feet. Thus, when any orall cro-ss section stakes are relative to their respective center stakesand are not in the same way relative to the initial stake or totheposition of the instrument from which the initial hub was taken, therear target and runner come into action, as above indicated.

While the accompanying drawing illustrates what I believe to be thepreferred einbodiment of my invention, it is to be understood that theinvention is not limited thereto, but that various changes may be madein the construction, arrangement and proportions of the parts withoutdeparting from the scope of the invention, as defined in the appendedclaims.

What I claim is l. A device of the character described, including a rodproper, the opposite faces of said rod displaying a scale, front andrear movable runners mounted on opposite faces of said rod and alsoprovided with scales, and targets carried by the respective runners, thescales of the rod coperating with the respective targets for indicatingthe ele vations, and the scales of the runners indicating thedifferences of the elevations.

2. A device of the character described, including a rod proper, theopposite faces of said rod displaying a scale, front and rear movablerunners mounted on opposite faces of said rod and also provided withscales, and targets carried by the respective runners, the scales of therod coperating with the respective targets for indicating the elevations, and the scales of the runners indicating the diercnces of theelevations, one of said targets being provided with laterally projectingwings, said wings being hingedly mounted whereby they may be folded backout of line of vision.

In testimony whereof I hereunto aix my signature in the presence of twowitnesses.

ROS S HOLLINGSWORTH.

Witnesses:

CHARLES H. BALDWIN, SAMUEL B. DYER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of ZPS/center` Washington, D. C.

